After Raiding Farm, Pennsylvania Authorities Sue Amish Farmer Over Raw Milk

An Amish girl pours milk after milking cows in Wakefield, Pa., on Oct. 22, 2003. The Amish, traditionalist farmers who spurn machinery and other modern conveniences, live off the land much as they have for centuries in various communities in rural Pennsylvania and Ohio, and now live side-by-side with modern Americans. Chris Hondros/Getty Images

A popular Amish farm that had been the subject of an armed raid by government officials on suspicion of selling “illegal milk,” among other products, is being sued by the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General and Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.

The farm has been ordered to halt all sales of its dairy products, inspiring widespread anger over what critics have called a blatant example of government overreach.

The Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture filed the lawsuit on Tuesday against Miller’s Organic Farm in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and its owner, Amos Miller, alleging that his farm has been in violation of Pennsylvania’s Milk Sanitation Law and operating without government-mandated permits.

“For years, this business has brushed off efforts to bring its commercial farm operation into compliance with the law—as all commercial farms are required to do,” said Attorney General Michelle Henry in a press release announcing the lawsuit.

“We cannot ignore the illnesses and further potential harm posed by [the] distribution of these unregulated products. We have long had food safety laws in this Commonwealth to protect the public from harm.

“Pennsylvanians should know what is in the products they and their families are consuming,” added Ms. Henry.

The embargo on Mr. Miller’s dairy comes less than two weeks after a Jan. 4 raid of the farm, when armed officials, including officers from the Pennsylvania State Police, along with personnel from the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, served him with a warrant after claiming the public had been exposed to a dangerous foodborne pathogen.

In the complaint, Pennsylvania authorities allege that the armed raid “revealed an expansive operation that manufactures and sells a vast array of illegal food and dairy products throughout the United States, including raw milk and raw milk products that have since been tested and found to contain the Listeria, monocytogenes bacteria, which poses a significant health risk.”

Attorney Robert Barnes, who represents Mr. Miller, issued a statement following the initial raid, claiming it violated his client’s constitutional rights.

“The Department of Agriculture of the State of Pennsylvania suddenly came, without notice, raided Amos’ farm, and detained everything Amos had in the farm’s freezer. They did so in a lawless manner, without appropriate authority, in violation of their own rules and regulations,” Mr. Barnes said.

Calls and emails from The Epoch Times to Attorney General Henry’s office were not returned.

Earlier this week, Mr. Miller’s private group of customers was informed that the government had revoked his right to continue selling his dairy products.

“We have received a letter from the State of Pennsylvania demanding that we stop providing our members with raw milk products,” according to the email obtained by The Epoch Times. “We disagree with their right to demand this, and our legal team is working aggressively to resolve this situation.”

The message added that the legal battle “is going to take a significant toll on our farm financially.”

Politicians and several high-profile conservatives were also quick to condemn the raid of Mr. Miller’s farm as a case study of government overreach.

‘Shameful’

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) said it is time for authorities to rethink their priorities.

“With all of the problems in society today, this is what the government wants to focus on?” Mr. Massie wrote in a Jan. 4 post on X, formerly Twitter. “A man growing food for informed customers, without participating in the industrial meat/milk complex? It’s shameful that it’s come to this.”

Donald Trump Jr. added on the social media platform that news of the raid made him feel “sick.”

“Imagine what law enforcement could accomplish if they went after, oh, I don’t know, say, members of elite pedophile rings rather than farmers selling to their neighbors???” Mr. Trump wrote in a Jan. 5 post. “Can I be the only person sick of this [expletive]?”

The government’s oversight role on the farming community has become a hot-button issue for growing segments of rural America who view many of the state and federal regulations as not only oppressive but also tilting the scale in favor of large industrial farms at the expense of the smaller, independent farmer.

For decades, a community of dairy farmers and nutrition advocates have campaigned for the right of individuals to produce, sell, and consume fresh, unprocessed milk. Advocates claim the consumption of raw milk can lead to numerous health benefits, including improving the immune and digestive systems, as well as being a cure for eczema and irritable bowel syndrome. The pasteurization process not only destroys dangerous pathogens like E. coli, salmonella, and campylobacter but also destroys its healthy nutrients, according to raw milk enthusiasts.

However, government agencies insist the potential downside of drinking raw milk far outweighs any perceived benefits.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advise against it, claiming that raw milk “can carry harmful germs, such as campylobacter, cryptosporidium, E. coli, listeria, brucella, and salmonella” that “can pose serious health risks to you and your family.” Raw milk-related outbreaks led to 2,645 illnesses and 228 hospitalizations between 1998 and 2018, according to the CDC.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also warns against its consumption.

“Decades ago, pasteurization of milk was adopted as a basic public health measure to kill dangerous bacteria,” the FDA says on its website. “This measure largely eliminated the risk of getting sick from one of the most important staples of the American diet.”

Government ‘Control Over the Farm System’

However, independent farmers vow to push back against what they believe is an alliance between massive agriculture interests and the government. The USDA and the FDA, who are charged with setting regulatory policy, have received funding from corporate sponsors through “partnerships,” including from several large agro-industrial farming interests.

A GoSendGo page was set up following the raid to help Mr. Miller pay the legal bills to be once again able to sell his products, which had already garnered $158,549 at the time of publication.

“As Amos fights this injustice, he needs to keep paying his employees and supporting the small farms that rely on Amos to sell their natural products,” reads a note on the GiveSendGo page. “If you would like to help keep Amos in business, please consider a donation.”

North Dakotan farmer Peter Bartlett, whose family owns Bartlett Farms, which sells raw dairy products, told The Epoch Times that the seizure and prohibition of Mr. Miller’s products isn’t about safety but about control.

“In a case like this where there aren’t any substantial claims from the customers, but the grievances are all coming from government regulators, it is clear that this is just another move to keep control over the farm system,” said Mr. Bartlett.

“The public is not at any real risk, but they need to make this independent farmer out to be a criminal to make an example out of him.”